Russian Railways levies trademark infringement against Apple

This is a discussion on Russian Railways levies trademark infringement against Apple within the Apple News forums, part of the Apple News Room category; At this point, we practically expect to see a new legal charge brought against Apple every day of the week, and oftentimes that is indeed ...

Russian Railways levies trademark infringement against Apple

At this point, we practically expect to see a new legal charge brought against Apple every day of the week, and oftentimes that is indeed the case, but this one is particularly interesting: TechCrunch reports that Russian Railways is charging Apple with trademark infringement, seeking 2 million roubles (roughly US$65,000) in damages.

The suit itself is rather vague and avoids citing exactly where Apple is allegedly in the wrong. The statement notes that Apple has infringed on Russian Railways' RZD trademark and used it in pictures on one of its digital marketplaces.

TechCrunch points out that this could be due to the use of RZD images on third party apps available for iOS, though it hardly seems appropriate to attack Apple rather than the apps creator. At this time, Apple hasn't issued an official statement on the case.

Apple Sued in Russia Over Third-party App Logo

Apple sued for Russian Railways logo in third-party app

Russian Railways has filed a lawsuit against Apple in Moscow after finding its logo in a third-party app icon. Apparently the makers of the Railway Tariff app rolled the company's logo into its icon without permission.

Russian Railways targeted Apple with its lawsuit to protect its intellectual property, according to RIA Novosti. The app in question shows price estimates and delivery times for cargo transported by train in Russia.

This isn't the first time Apple has dealt with unlicensed railway-related graphic use with its iOS devices. In fall 2012 the Apple had to strike a licensing deal with Swiss Federal Railways after using the company's well known clock face design as its iPad Clock app icon, although in that case it was Apple using the graphic and not a third-party app developer.

Filing a lawsuit against Apple instead of the app designer will likely get Railway Tariff pulled from the App Store quickly, which is probably what Russian Railways wants. The app developer can update the icon at their own pace while Russian Railways doesn't have to worry about whether or not shoppers think it supports the app, and the railway will see faster action than if it targeted the developers directly.